Bears title hopes rest on healthy veteran defense

Saturday

Jul 26, 2008 at 12:01 AMJul 26, 2008 at 7:40 PM

Lovie Smith has a simple formula for the Bears returning to the Super Bowl. "We think we can get our defense back to a dominating defense, which we will have to play to achieve those goals," Chicago’s coach said.

Matt Trowbridge

Lovie Smith has a simple formula for the Bears returning to the Super Bowl.

"We think we can get our defense back to a dominating defense, which we will have to play to achieve those goals," Chicago’s coach said.

Chicago, 7-9 last year after reaching the Super Bowl in 2006, is being written off in most quarters. ESPN’s current power rankings rate the Bears as the NFL’s 25th-best (or eighth-worst) team. The glamour contenders will try to win the Super Bowl with players such as Tom Brady, Randy Moss, LaDainian Tomlinson and Terrell Owens.

Chicago’s hopes lie with defense. Just the way the Bears like it.

"That’s just a great football saying: Defense wins games, offense sells tickets," cornerback Charles Tillman said. "That’s from the beginning of time."

That is why critics write off Chicago’s chances to contend in 2008. The Bears have no wide receiver or running back who gained as many as 600 yards last year and no quarterback who threw for even 1,500 yards. Every position on offense except tight end is unsettled.

Is that any way to reach the playoffs?

It is for the Bears.

As long as the defense dominates. The Bears have won three division titles in seven years, despite an offense that has ranked 26th or lower six of those seasons:

Chicago went 13-3 in 2001 with the NFL’s No. 26 offense because the defense gave up the fewest points in the NFL.

Chicago went 11-5 in 2005 with the league’s No. 29 offense by again surrendering the fewest points in the league.

Chicago went 13-3 and reached the Super Bowl with the No. 15 offense and a defense ranked No. 3 in fewest points allowed.

So doubts about Chicago’s offense means nothing has changed. The good news is nothing has changed for the defense, either. Except change for the better.

"It’s the same defense," linebacker Brian Urlacher said. "For the most part, it’s the same old guys that started in the Super Bowl. There’s no doubt in my mind that we can be dominant. The No. 1 thing is staying healthy."

The Bears slipped to the No. 28 defense (No. 16 in points allowed) last year, Smith said, because it lost players like safety Mike Brown, defensive tackle Tommie Harris and cornerback Nathan Vasher.

If they all stay healthy, the Bears may have the largest collection of defensive stars in the NFL. Urlacher, Briggs, Brown, Vasher, Harris and Adewale Ogunleye have all made the Pro Bowl. Add in Tillman, Mark Anderson, who had 12 sacks as a rookie, and Alex Brown, perhaps the Bears’ best all-around defensive end, and that’s nine defensive veterans who are close to Pro Bowl-quality. And six of them recently signed long-term contracts.

The Bears can win with that kind of defense. Even with an offense no one wants to watch.

"We want to make a team play pretty close to perfect," Alex Brown said. "If they do something wrong, we’re gong to take the ball. Even if they don’t do something wrong, we’re still going to take the ball."

"We have some players," Mike Brown said, "who are the best at their position in the league. I don’t see a secondary that’s all-around better than us. We can play lots of different styles."

No one thought the Bears would win before the defense led them to the division title in 2001. The same thing with 2005. Then there was the Super Bowl in 2006.

The Bears’ say there is no reason 2008 should be any different. Not with nine proven veterans back and healthy.

"We can ball with the best of them," Tillman said. "The sky is the limit for this defense.

"But we can’t look back. We need to stop living in 2006. It’s 2008 now. We have to establish our own identity again. With everybody healthy, I think we can do that."